Heirloom Tomato Varieties & Reviews | Tomat-Pomidor
Honest reviews of global tomato varieties from a 15-year-old growers community.
Quick Summary of Paslyon Chernyy (Black Nightshade) 🌍 Origin: A Russian club variety (originally distributed by the St. Petersburg Tomato Club). The name intriguingly translates to “Black Nightshade”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Determinate, but a very tall one! It grows to about 1.5–1.7m (5–5.5 ft) before it terminates (self-tops) and stops growing upward. It performs very … Read more
Quick Summary of Pineapple Striped (Polosatyy Ananas) 🌍 Origin: A stunning bicolor heirloom obtained from an amateur tomato collector in Bulgaria. In Russian collections, it circulates under the translated name Polosatyy Ananas. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), mid-season variety. Typically grows to about 1.6m (5.2 ft) tall. Performs best when planted in a prime, sunny … Read more
Quick Summary of Podarok Moey Zhene (My Wife’s Gift) 🌍 Origin: A stunning Russian variety. The name translates beautifully to “My Wife’s Gift”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), mid-season variety. The bush is surprisingly well-behaved—not overly sprawling, with moderate sucker production. It performs excellently when trained to 2 stems. 🍅 Fruit Characteristics: Deeply pleated, ribbed … Read more
Quick Summary of Purple Sugar (Purpurnyy Sakharnyy) 🌍 Origin: A commercial variety sold in Russia by the “Dom Semyan” (House of Seeds) company. The packet claims it is an “original variety native to Latin America,” but it appears to be a ribbed dark variety highly prone to fasciation. The name translates to “Purple Sugar”. 🌿 … Read more
Quick Summary of Palchiki (Little Fingers) 🌍 Origin: A classic Russian “family heirloom” (folk breeding) originating from the Rostov region. The original poster has maintained this variety in her family collection for over 20 years. The name Palchiki translates to “Little Fingers”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall). Outdoors in open ground, it grows to about … Read more
Quick Summary of Striped Pepper (Pertsevidnyy Polosatyy) 🌍 Origin: A classic Russian striped paste variety, though its origins are muddy. The name translates exactly to “Striped Pepper-shaped”. Warning: This variety suffers from a massive identity crisis on the commercial seed market. Different seed companies (SeDek, Gavrish, Nash Sad) sell completely different tomatoes under this name! … Read more
Quick Summary of Pani Yana (Lady Yana) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial variety from the popular “SibSad” (Siberian Garden) seed company. The name translates to “Lady Yana” or “Mrs. Yana”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Officially classified as an early, super-determinate bush variety designed to stay compact (around 50-60 cm / 1.6-2 ft). However, some growers report … Read more
Quick Summary of In Memory of Korneev (Pamyati Korneeva) 🌍 Origin: A celebrated Russian heirloom. The name translates to “In Memory of Korneev.” Note: It is often confused with another variety called “Korneevskie.” According to growers, true Pamyati Korneeva has regular foliage (RL), while the Ukrainian Korneevskie has potato leaf (PL) foliage. 🌿 Plant Habit: … Read more
Quick Summary of Pastel Orange Heart (Pastelno-oranzhevoye Serdtse) 🌍 Origin: A Russian commercial heirloom known for its breathtaking aesthetic appeal. The name translates exactly to “Pastel Orange Heart”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), reaching over 1.8m (6 ft). The vines are vigorous and well-leafed, not spindly like some other oxheart varieties. Yields are generally very … Read more
Quick Summary of Paul Robeson (Pol Robson) 🌍 Origin: A legendary Soviet-era heirloom named in honor of the American singer, actor, and civil rights activist Paul Robeson. Some sources claim it was bred in the 1930s, while others point to breeder M. Danilenko in the 1960s. 🌿 Plant Habit: Generally behaves as a vigorous semi-determinate … Read more
Quick Summary of Streak Lightning (Polosa Molnii) 🌍 Origin: A stunning striped and anthocyanin (purple-splashed) variety. In Russian collections, it circulates under the translated name Polosa Molnii. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), reaching 1.4–1.8m (4.5–6 ft). Seedlings can look remarkably spindly and fragile (wispy foliage), but the plant gains moderate vigor once planted out. Avoid … Read more
Quick Summary of Priz Ispytaniy (Prize of the Trials) 🌍 Origin: A fantastic Russian variety. The name translates to “Prize of the Trials”. 🌿 Plant Habit: Indeterminate (tall), mid-season variety. Typically grows to about 1.6–1.8 meters (5.2–6 ft). It is highly reliable and sets fruit perfectly without dropping blossoms (no blossom drop). It may take … Read more